Every Beautiful Day
by cause.A.scene
Summary: Yet another tag to Doppelganger. Just because I would love some extra Shepwhump in addition to the lovely episode we got. Obvious spoilers for Doppelganger. Rating for mild swearing. COMPLETE
1. Reality

**AN: **Alright, so I like tags... I am writing an original piece though that is coming along. But for now, I wanted to add to the already fabulous episode, Doppelganger. I really liked it, but would have loved for more... visible Shep whump. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with what I got, but that's the beauty of fanfiction: You can make everything perfect (perfect for yourself anyway.) And who knows, maybe some of you will like my idea of what could have happened after the episode end.

Actually, this takes place after they wake up and before the scene on the balcony.

And, I have seen someone else take a similar take on the episode as I did, but I'm not copying off them as I've been writing this before they posted theirs, and its a little different anyways. They are all good in my opinion.

Well, enjoy.

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* * *

_

_Reality. _

A pretty straightforward concept; it is what it is. A lot like time. It's honestly one of those things that should be constant, and on Earth, it is. Sure, you have daydreams, drugs, and sometimes even medical mishaps that will toy with the idea of reality, but when it comes down to it, reality is always waiting and always the same.

But nothing compares to the "reality" in the Pegasus Galaxy.

Not when there's Replicators, time-dilation fields, and the newest addition to the family, evil crystal beings that invade dreams and make them seem impeccably real. And, there would certainly be more, given their luck.

So, he had every reason in the world to believe that the voices and beeping sounds he was hearing as the fuzz in his head cleared were also possibly fake. He had already made that mistake once, after all, and believed McKay was dead. Hell, maybe he really was dead. There was really no way to know at the moment.

It had been very obvious when he was in McKay's dream with the rain, the whale, and the damn clown, but when he had woke up to McKay being shocked and pronounced dead, he had been much less certain. Of course, then he saw his evil-self and fought a losing fight with it. All leading to McKay walking in and saving the day.

But was it real?

He and McKay had briefly discussed it in the latest "dream," but still, who could really know at this point in time? However, if all was as it seemed, then he should be waking up, to _reality, _and should see McKay, along with a large group of medical staff and his team looking down at him.

As this thought crossed John's mind, panic filled his exhausted body as he realized that he was not sure McKay was alright. It didn't take long for this to motivate him to open his eyes and search the room.

And, believe it or not, things _were _going as they seemed.

As his eyes opened and searched the room, it was all as he knew it was supposed to be. Immediately, he looked over at McKay, and saw him tiredly staring back. Relief replaced his fear as he shared an awkward look with McKay, then looked at the people standing in the observation room.

No, he could not be one hundred percent certain this was real, but he was sure he could handle this version of reality where all his friends were alive and well and happy to see him.

He allowed his head to fall back against the pillow, or rather, it kind of forced itself. With all the commotion and need to see McKay alive, he hadn't really took in how _he_ was feeling. And, maybe that was for the best.

It honestly seemed like pain was filling him from his head down, in a precise order. It started with a dull headache that was more than tolerable, though very annoying. But, it only moved down from there; everything from his cheekbones to his knuckles were throbbing, and it didn't stop there.

As the pain continued to wrack his body, memories of his fight with the entity flooded back to him, and he began to realize that every punch it had thrown, every kick to the chest, and every time he was thrown across the room could be felt now. And when he thought back on it, he couldn't remember feeling pain _then, _but he sure as hell could feel it now.

As he fell into his own world of pain and memory, "reality" once again fell out of focus, along with the worried glances and increasingly frantic questions from Keller and the others. But, he couldn't hear them. There was a buzzing in his ears, and things only got hazier.

He was beginning to feel trapped in his own body. Even breathing was getting hard. Suddenly, he felt small hands grasp his swore shoulders and demand something of him. He didn't hear the demand, but he was forced back to reality and saw the young face of Dr. Keller staring at him.

"Colonel, I need you to tell me what you're feeling…" she articulated, her eyes and voice sturdy and objective, almost as if she were talking to a frightened child. This confused him, but he blinked a few times more and let the words wash over him.

_This is reality, _something inside of him said. _The pain is real, and something is wrong. Tell her, _it continued. He then took inventory of all his problems, and came to the final conclusion that the pain brought about by breathing was the most serious.

"Hurts…_"_ he gasped, surprised by how weak and contorted his voice was. "To breathe," he forced out, the pain only intensifying as he tried to speak. He watched as the room swam in and out of focus and the woman before him doubled. He noticed the two Dr. Kellers say something, but he couldn't quite make it out. The pain was so intense.

He finally decided that the blackness gathering in the corners of his vision were much more pleasant and allowed himself to slip off into them. Right before everything went black, he saw the frantic face of Rodney McKay hover before him, and then he was out.

* * *

Rodney woke up feeling exhausted, but still happy that he was waking up at all. His immediate action had, of course, been to make sure that Sheppard was also waking up. It was so hard to tell what was real and what wasn't lately. 

And, much to his relief, he saw Sheppard's eyes slowly open and watched him raise his head and look in his direction. It had been a quick, but meaningful glance between the two. Once again, they had had to save each other, and once again, they had succeeded. It was a mutual thing, McKay decided, because neither of them were sentimental in the least, so "the look" would have to do.

Rodney allowed himself to relax, happy that everything was beginning to calm down. But, as usual, he had jumped to conclusions.

One of the many annoying beeping sounds were picking up in pace, and at first, he thought nothing of it. But when he heard one of the medics mumble something about the Colonel, Rodney's eyes shot back open and darted over to Sheppard.

The man's entire look had changed in the mere seconds that Rodney had looked away. Sheppard had gone a pasty white, more sweat appeared over his brow, and Rodney watched as his breaths became shorter and quicker.

He looked over at Keller who was studying one of the machines. She then said something to one of the medics who began pumping something into Sheppard's IV.

"What's going on," Rodney asked frantically, though not entirely sure anyone heard. He the looked upwards to where Carter, Teyla, and Ronan still stood, and saw that they too were thoroughly engulfed in the sudden change in Sheppard's condition.

"Doctor," Colonel Carter's voice echoed through the room. "What's happening? What's wrong with him?"

Keller didn't stop performing small tests on Sheppard, but did answer the question. "I… I don't know. He was fine, but now's he's showing signs of labored breathing and…" She stopped talking and seemed to think physical touch would get through to her patient the best and grabbed Sheppard's shoulders.

Until this point, Sheppard had been completely out-of-it. His eyes were shut, but the movement in his face said that he was still awake, though apparently in a great deal of pain. _Great, _Rodney thought, _if he's showing signs of pain, then you know its bad. _But, once Keller grabbed his shoulders, his eyes opened up, but seemed extremely out of focus.

"Colonel, I need you to tell me what you're feeling…" Keller said, looking him straight in the eyes. Rodney watched Sheppard think about this for a second, before rasping out "Hurts to breath." _Even better. The man can't breath._

Rodney could no longer stay still as he knew things were going downhill fast with Sheppard. And after risking his life for the guy, he had every right to make sure he didn't go off and die. So, he got up and walked over to Sheppard's bedside, where he unfortunately got a better view. He looked a lot worse close up.

He seemed to have gotten even paler, and now his breath was actually hitching in his lungs. Rodney leaned over him and watched his eyes slowly close, knowing he was about to be out.

"What… what is happening," Teyla's voice now came through the room, sounding very worried.

"I don't know," Keller repeated, staring down at her patient. "But it seems to be getting worse and…. Oh my God…"

Rodney didn't need to ask what was wrong because he could see it for himself. Blood was now making it's way down Sheppard's brow, and as they watched it, more began spilling from his nose and lip.

"That's it," Keller yelled. "Get him to the infirmary now. Get a CAT scan and x-ray his chest immediately. And I have a feeling we'll be needing surgery."

And just like that, Rodney was pushed aside and the room erupted with voices and machine sounds. Rodney was also aware of more people talking over the intercom, but he was no longer paying attention to what was being said. Instead, he found himself transfixed and horrified at the site of more bruises and more blood forming on the Colonel's body.

Reality could be a bitch.

* * *

tbc...

hope you all liked it so far.


	2. Tips

**AN: **The reviews were great! Thanks for that. Made my weekend! Anyways… I'm so excited 'cuz tonight's Travelers, which should be really excellent. And my birthday is this coming Thursday (Nov. 1). So, I'm pretty happy.

But, anyways. I don't really know how you all feel about our two new characters, Keller and Carter, but in this, I've explored them a little. Keller mostly. It's easier to do her because Carter is already an established character and I've only seen like, two episodes of SG1. And while I miss Weir and Beckett so much, looks like we are just going to have to accept the newbies. Luckily, I like the characters so far. So, we'll see.

**Warning: **OK, I just want to warn you guys that I do use the Lord's name. I know that may be offensive to some, and for that I apologize. I mean no disrespect as I am religious myself. The phrases just seem right.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own them, unfortunately. Well, I do own some of the medical personnel… woo hoo…

* * *

The scene felt horribly familiar to Jennifer Keller; running through the Atlantis hallways beside a gurney, shouting out orders and holding the life of a _very _important member of the Atlantis team in her hands. _The head of the military_, for the love of God. And it seemed like not too long ago, it was the expedition leader she was trying to save, but that had gone so well, hadn't it?

But, she didn't have time to dwell over it because a certain colonel wouldn't stop forming new bruises and pouring blood from various places on his body. And as she looked him over, she came to the conclusion that only time she had ever seen patients like this was when there was a gang fight or some sort of physical brawl.

She sighed as the infirmary door was now in sight which meant she could work on this poor man in a real hospital environment, which would make her much more comfortable.

It took about fifteen long and agonizing minutes before she felt that he was stable enough to have a few tests done. The man was a mess. And a growing mess at that. Upon removing his shirt, she saw multiple bruises on his chest and shoulders, and immediately felt bad for grabbing them earlier. And right in front of her, more bruises appeared at an impossible rate. But she did what she could and would be right back at it in only a few minutes.

She sighed and did a few things before her eyes wondered over to the infirmary door which she knew was the only thing keeping four very worried people from questioning her to death and demanding to see Colonel Sheppard. She looked away quickly, not wanting to face them quite yet.

When it came down to it, she was just not too good at this stuff. At least, she wasn't good with the non-medical parts of being a doctor, the biggest issue being talking with friends and family. And in this case, the patient was the one man in charge of protecting the entire expedition. And, from what she had heard and for how long they had been at Atlantis, he was doing pretty good job.

"Doctor Keller," a voice called, interrupting her thoughts. "His scans came back positive for broken ribs on the left side only, but seconds later, he seemed to be having problems with the right side, so we scanned him again and it showed broken ribs on that side as well. He's forming problems quicker than we can locate them," the young doctor, named Dr. Fried, said sounding quite exasperated.

Thoughts raced through Keller's mind and suddenly felt like a med student again when she would be put on the spot for a question or scenario she wasn't too sure on. Her heart beat boldly against her chest and she thought quickly.

Just then, another woman, a nurse this time, came into the room holding scans on Sheppard's chest and what looked like his skull as well.

"He has a concussion. We scanned his chest again, and nothing new came up except some internal bleeding. Not too bad now, but it will be. We scanned his head twice, and only the concussion. The big problem right now is the pressure the ribs are putting on the lungs. I don't much how much longer they will hold out" she said quickly.

Dr. Fried looked to Dr. Keller. "Should we prep for surgery?"

Keller thought a moment. "I don't know if that's a good idea. If more problems come up during surgery, it may be too much to handle."

"Look, I know I'm just a nurse, but this man needs surgery to fix those lungs before he loses them. If something else comes up, at least we'll have him open and ready to fix it," she continued, talking mostly to Keller. "I'm sorry if this seems frank, but you two are new here and I've been around since the beginning of this place and he's a big reason we are all still here. We can't lose him."

The nurse was an older, motherly woman. She said it all very respectfully, but also to the point. And that point was very true. They couldn't afford for his lungs to collapse and it would probably be best to fix up the internal bleeding before it became to much of a problem.

"Ok," Keller began slowly, knowing she was making a big decision. "Scan him once more, if there is nothing new, we operate." She turned to the nurse and smiled. "Thank you."

Nurse Pam smiled knowingly to the young doctor before turning back to the patient in the other room. Keller had always known that most great doctors have one certain nurse that is always there to keep their heads on straight and bring reality back to them. Looked like Nurse Pam was a likely choice.

Keller took a deep breath before following Nurse Pam into the room that currently held her patient.

* * *

The mood in the hallway outside the infirmary was nothing short of tense. It had already been hours since Sheppard was rushed out of the quarantine room. How many times had they been forced to wait out there, hoping to get some sort of news on someone they cared about? This time was a little different from what they were used to, as it was Colonel Carter waiting with them, and not Elizabeth, as well as waiting on Dr. Keller to address them rather than Carson. But it was something they were going to have to get used to.

As always, Rodney paced. Paced because if he sat still, his mind would wander through so many different things at once, that his head would surely explode. Teyla sat perfectly straight in a chair against the wall, her eyes following Rodney's movements. Ronan stood in a corner, almost perfectly still. Colonel Carter leaned against the wall and watched the people before her.

No, she did not know Colonel Sheppard as well as they did, but she had heard plenty about him in Stargate Command among the officers and had personally read many of the mission reports. There was no denying it, the man was one of the most qualified to protect the expedition and best soldiers she had heard of. A bit unorthodox, but he always seemed to have the best intentions. She had personally seen his selflessness when he volunteered to go inside McKay's mind. Not to mention his dedication to Dr. Weir.

When it came down to it, he just seemed like a good guy to have on one's side, as well a good guy in general. And the best part of it was, he seemed to be able to handle McKay better than anyone she had ever met.

"Rodney, I think you should rest," Teyla offered softly, her face showing pity and fear.

"I… I can't do that. This doesn't make any bit of sense. It is as if everything he went through in the dream is happening now, but that invades the separation of dream and reality. Of course, the entity could actually _kill _from inside the dreams but…"

"Rodney," Ronan growled, apparently attempting a softer growl to show that he either cared about Rodney, or was in no mood to hear his ramblings. Or both.

"No, no. I can't… not now…"

"Rodney, you've been through a lot too. Don't you think it would be best if…" Carter added, trying to help the losing of battle of getting Rodney to rest.

"No, I do not. It was my idea to go to that planet in the first place, my persistence that kept us there, and it was me he was attempting to save. I owe it to him to figure this out…"

"Rodney, this is not your fault," Teyla said, much firmer this time. "And, maybe it is not something you can reverse. Maybe it will just have to be handled medically and treated like any other incident."

"Any other incident? Oh yeah, because he is beaten to a pulp and thrown around the control room by an evil version of _himself _on a regular basis…," McKay shot back disgustedly.

"Wait, what did you say happened," Ronan asked, stepping out of his corner. It then occurred to McKay that they had not seen what he had and therefore did not know what had happened in Sheppard's dream. They were all looking intently at him now, waiting for him to answer Ronan's question.

"Well, I don't know _exactly, _but when I came in, Sheppard was lying on the ground… um… _Good_ Sheppard, that is. And… _Evil _Sheppard was standing over him," McKay said, trying to recall the events of the dream. "It didn't look like Sheppard could get up, and apparently a major throw down took place. Kind of wish I could have seen it, actually. Sheppard versus Sheppard is worth way more than PayPer View…"

"Rodney," Carter said, trying to get McKay back on tract.

"Oh right, right. There were…uh dents in the walls and the railing on the second story of the control room was broken as if someone had been thrown through it. And that's likely given the position I found Good Sheppard in when I showed up. Besides, Evil Sheppard had super-human strength. It was an unfair fight, really…"

"So you think that the injuries he got in the dream are showing up now," Teyla inquired looking more worried than before.

"It would seem so, but then again, I was eaten by a whale. But I don't feel like I was eaten by a whale…"

"A whale," Carter asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Nevermind that," Rodney piped quickly, his cheeks a bit brighter now. "Shouldn't I feel like I was eaten by a whale? Wait a minute! I should be in the infirmary, shouldn't I? Oh God, what if blood starts pouring out of me or a burst or something…"

But before anyone could assure him that there was no blood on him, or that he may spontaneously combust, the infirmary door slip open, revealing the very small form of Dr. Keller. As she slowly stepped closer, she seemed to shrink in appearance. Teyla immediately felt sorry for her, knowing that she was still very new to all of this.

"He's…," she paused, seemingly trying to find the right words to say, but McKay, once again, jumped to conclusions.

"Oh God, he's… no…"

"Oh.. No, no, no. He's not dead," Keller replied frantically. "I'm so sorry… it's just.. I've never seen anything like it. We… opened him up and… well basically a few more injuries came up, but we handled them and…"

"Is he okay," McKay interrupted, wanting to get to the point.

"Um.. Yes. I think. We're going to have to watch him closely. So far, so good, but again, I've never seen anything like it. He won't be awake for a while, so we don't know if there's any neurological damage and he… whatever he went through was pretty bad and, well, he's going to be in a lot of pain for a while."

Everyone let the words register and thought about it all.

"Sheppard's pretty good with pain," Ronan said, breaking the ice and attempting to make the situation a bit better.

"I'm sure he is, but this is pretty serious…," Keller started, but was interrupted once again by a amused snort from McKay.

"You obviously don't know Sheppard. Let me give you a few tips: _I'm fine, _means _I feel like death. _Just, don't expect him to tell you if he's hurting."

Keller frowned at him, and turned to the others to see if they were going to object to McKay's assessment, but no one did. Keller decided to take the tip for when the Colonel woke up.

"May we see him," Teyla asked smoothly, now standing.

"Not right now. They are still wrapping up some of his injuries and getting him comfortable. He's going to be out for a while with the anesthesia, so you guys might just want to rest or…"

Teyla smiled. "Another tip, Dr. Keller," she began sweetly, bringing her hand to Keller's shoulder. "We will always wait," she continued, looking a Ronan and McKay. "So will he when it is one of us."

Keller smiled again. It would take a while to get used to this group of people, but something told her it wasn't going to be a horrible trip.

"In that case, I'll come get you guys when you're allowed to come in."

"Thank you.."

"Wait," Rodney said as Keller turned away. "I… I don't feel well," he said quickly. It was a good plan, but Teyla and Ronan could see right through it. Rodney McKay felt just fine, but if he said otherwise, he would be allowed in the infirmary and therefore closer to John.

But, Keller did by it. And if would have been unprofessional for her to ignore him as his heart _had _stopped only hours before.

"Right.. Right I should have had you in there a long time ago. Just… just be quiet and stay to the left side of the room. Colonel Sheppard needs quiet and a sterile environment right now…" Keller said, putting her hand on his back and leading him forward.

As she led him away, he turned back and smiled at Teyla, Ronan, and Carter who stared back with a skeptical look. When they had disappeared into the infirmary, Carter turned to Ronan and Teyla.

"I've got a _lot _to do. But I will be back soon to check on him. Please let me know if anything comes up," she asked sincerely. Teyla could see that the woman really did generally care about the colonel's health.

"Of course, Colonel," Teyla answered warmly. "I know he would appreciate knowing you waited this long to learn of his condition."

"Yes, well. We are going to be spending a lot of time together. I just… I know what it is like to care for a team and I know the bonds that form. And I hope to one day form some bond here as well."

Ronan did not say anything, just watched the Colonel. There were definitely some things about her he was not too fond of. But mostly, he just did not know her and was therefore apprehensive to accept her.

Teyla however, took this statement to heart.

"I am sure that will be more than possible, Colonel."

With that, they smiled once more before Carter turned to leave while Teyla returned to her seat and began the waiting game once more.

* * *

**EN: **Hope you guys enjoyed this one as well. Next one should be out soon. 


	3. Driving Miss Jenny

**AN: **I find it funny how much steam this fic lost with the second chapter. I've got a few guesses as to why, but either way, here's the next one and thanks to those that did review. Greatly appreciated.

**Warning: **Some mentions of Beckett that almost had me crying. Ha, its not even that bad, but I guess just thinking about him got me going. Probably didn't shine Keller in the best of lights in this one. Hope you guys won't be too broken up. Mainly Rodney for this one.

* * *

Rodney wasn't sure what to expect. Not that that was too unsettling because he had seen John Sheppard pretty screwed up in the three plus years they had been there. But on the other hand, it was never exactly simple to walk into the room and see him in his various states of injuries and what-not.

The problem with this time is he really didn't know what to expect. Well, obviously he'd look like he got beat up real bad. That was a good place to start.

So, as he was led through the infirmary door, he prepared himself to see Sheppard, but after three thorough glances across the room, there was no Sheppard in sight. There was however, a few nurses standing over one particular bed across the room, and even then the lower half of the bed was covered by a privacy curtain.

Rodney could feel himself craning his neck to see around the nurses and see Sheppard, but then he felt the small hand of Dr. Keller on his back.

"Nice try, Dr. McKay. But we need to run a few tests and then you are to stay in the bed."

Rodney rolled his eyes, seeing that his brilliant plan to see Sheppard before the others was backfiring.

"Yeah, yeah," he said absentmindedly, brushing her hand off his back. "That can wait. What's going on over there," he asked, still looking in what he knew to be Sheppard's direction.

Keller sighed. "They're taking care of him and no, it would be best if you just stayed back for right now. Besides, we need to take care of you. So, if you would follow Nurse Camden, she'll get you situated."

Rodney rolled his eyes as he realized that once again, he had managed to get the man-nurse while Sheppard got all the cute ones. Damn him and all his kirkyness. And, a full fifteen minutes later, he was done with all the pointless tests and was on a bed far from Sheppard's. He looked around, pleased to see that all the nurses and Keller were no where in sight. He pulled the covers back, got off his bed and went over to Sheppard's bed, all quite spy-like, if he did say so himself.

Sheppard… didn't look like Sheppard. Half his face was covered by an oxygen mask while his arms housed several different tubes all winding up to various machines around the bed. The parts of his face that were visible either had bruises or patches of white gauze or stitches.

_Man, Sheppard. When you do it, you do it good, don't you? _Rodney shook his head as he pulled up a chair and took a seat. Sure, he would probably get a stern talking to about this, but as far as he was concerned, he was not doing any harm to himself, or to Sheppard. Besides, he was sure Keller might have a mean streak, but she could never compare to Carson's scary words and looks if anyone disobeyed his medical orders.

He really did miss Carson sometimes. Especially times like these when someone needed him. And especially when it was Sheppard. The guy always managed to get all the weird diseases that took an exceptional doctor. Not that Keller wasn't a good doctor, but he didn't know her and she hadn't proven herself. Not really. Basically, she was no Carson. She had not seen what he had, and she had not been there when they had needed help. It had always been Carson that managed to bring Sheppard back from whatever horrible situation he got himself into. Oh, sometimes he really, really missed Carson.

He had to have been sitting there for at least another fifteen minutes before he heard someone enter the room, huff-and-puff, then leave the room again. And he knew it was coming. Knew the nurse was going to get Keller and knew he would be ushered to his bed soon enough. But he stayed anyway. He would meet it when it came.

And the truth was, he did feel responsible for Sheppard's condition. No, it wasn't entirely his fault, nor would Sheppard blame it on him. Hell, Sheppard would probably be pissed to find out Rodney felt responsible. But it didn't change anything. He had insisted on them staying on that planet. If he would have just listened to Sheppard in the first place, the crystal would have never been touched. And if it was never touched, Rodney would have never needed Sheppard to go into his head to save him.

"Dr. McKay," a slightly annoyed voice came from behind him. "I thought I laid down the rules before you came in here," Keller said, stopping before Rodney's seated form, but not making him get up.

"Yeah, but that was what, thirty minutes ago? I think he's comfortable enough. He hasn't moved an inch the entire time."

"He just had extensive surgery, I wouldn't be moving either."

Rodney rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well Beckett used to let us in here earlier. And even though he would never admit it, I'm sure Sheppard likes waking up to people around him."

Keller did not respond right away. He knew he had struck a particular nerve with her by bringing up Carson, but he didn't care at the moment. He was comfortable here with Sheppard.

"Well, first of all, I'm not Dr. Beckett," she responded softly, not coldly, but not exactly sweetly either. "Now, I know you're worried about him, but there's nothing you can do for him now, except to take care of yourself. He did do this to save you after all, so don't make his efforts worthless."

Rodney whipped his head around and glared at her. She just confirmed what he had been thinking about ever since Sheppard started deteriorating in the quarantine room: Sheppard was here because of Rodney. It mostly his fault. And frankly, it was not what he wanted to hear.

"Well, thank you Dr. Obvious. I really appreciate you trying to make me feel worse," he said in a heated puff. "Now, you did your voodoo tests on me and I'm fine. And if it's that important to you that I'm as far away from him as possible, then fine, I'll go get in the bed like a good little boy. But if anything happens, like, I don't know, he dies because I'm always needing to be saved, would you be so kind as to wake me so I can say my last goodbye."

Nobody said a word. And Rodney was pretty happy about that too. He knew he had just blown up and Keller, but with the combination of remembering Carson and her unintentionally making a comment that made him feel guilty, he had just snapped.

"That's pretty morbid, McKay," a weak, muffled voice said behind him. Turns out him and Keller had been so preoccupied with each other, they hadn't even noticed that two green eyes were now staring at them, his eyebrows cocked.

"Yes, well you never really know with you," McKay replied, smiling broadly.

Sheppard feebly rolled his eyes and began to bring his hand to his face and push the mask off his nose and mouth. There was a small rush of wind behind him and then Keller appeared on the other side of Sheppard.

"You should leave that on, Colonel," she cooed softly, placing her hand on his to push the mask back in place.

But Sheppard slowly shook his head and pushed at the mask again. "I can breath just fine, thanks."

And he seemed to be telling the truth. Keller apparently saw the futility in fighting him, so she placed a nose canal on him instead, which he allowed.

"You really made us work today Colonel. And I'm rather surprised you woke up this soon," she said, looking down at her watch.

"I'm full of surprises."

Rodney watched Sheppard carry a conversation like it was nothing. Of course, the man still looked like crap. His skin was still extremely pale in all the places that weren't already covered by bruises or gauze and he looked bone tired.

"I can see that," Keller replied, smiling slightly. She then began her check over of Sheppard, listening to his heart and lungs, checking his blood pressure, and shining that damned penlight in the poor man's eyes. When she finished, he looked even more tired and more annoyed than before. Rodney smiled. Oh how Sheppard hated the infirmary and all it's pleasures.

"Well Colonel, you're going to be in pain for a while to say the least. Broken and cracked ribs, concussion, plenty of lacerations and bruises… the good news is we did repair all the eternal bleeding and your lungs are doing very well. So all-in-all, you should be fine. Your temperature is a little high, but its not too concerning right now. One more thing we'll b monitoring."

Sheppard nodded slowly, his eyes already beginning to droop.

"Before you go to sleep, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine."

Dr. Keller looked over at McKay who stared back with an _I-told-you-so _look.

"Right, I'll send a nurse in to up the morphine dose," she then turned to McKay and her tone grew a little colder at her next words. "And it looks like you got yourself a visitor and I was about to go get the others in a few minutes anyway, if that's ok with you," she asked, turning back the Sheppard, who nodded.

Keller then walked away, leaving Rodney and Sheppard alone.

"What was that about," Sheppard asked tiredly.

"What was what about?"

"That heated conversation with Keller."

"Oh that. That was nothing," McKay responded, not wanting to bring up his outburst. He already felt a little odd knowing that Sheppard had heard the last part of his rant about saying last goodbyes.

"Right," came a skeptical response, but that was the last on the subject. "You ok?"

His last question was barely more than a whisper, but McKay heard it and was taken aback by it. Not that he didn't think Sheppard would ask it, but it was just kind of out of the blue and took him off guard.

"Uh yeah, I'm not the one laying in a bed hooked up to enough machines to power New York City."

Sheppard shrugged half-heartedly. "You're in scrubs. And I wasn't sure my last memory was… real," he said, his breathing becoming heavier as sleep fought to take over. And as much as McKay wanted him to stay up and talk, he knew it was best if he gave into the sleep.

"Gosh, Sheppard. Just give up already. You're tired, so sleep. And the two goons will be in soon, so you better do it soon."

The corners of John's mouth curled up ever-so-slightly. "You sleep too," he mumbled, his eyes getting lower and lower by the second.

"Yeah, yeah, sleep."

**EN: **Probably just a short wrap-up left. I simply love the connection between Rodney and John… makes me happy. Anyways, goodnight everyone.


	4. Beautiful Days

**AN: **Oh my goodness, I am SO sorry. I honestly have no idea what happened with this story because I clearly remember writing it, and was sure I posted it. Either I'm crazy, or my computer went wonky. Either way, this chapter is terribly late and I apologize profously. I had to rewrite it last night (that carried over to this morning) but here it is. The good thing is I still remembered where I was going with it. So.. I'm very sorry.

**Dedicated to: **_Kristen999 _for reviewing last night and making me realize it hadn't been finished. It probably would have went undone for a lot longer. So, thanks to you, Kristen.

**Warning: **I want to apologize in advance for mistakes. I didn't have a formal beta for this chapter, just my sister who I forced into reading over it. She wasn't all that into it, though, so there may be a few here and there.

I won't make you wait any longer. Here's the final chapter.

* * *

Teyla couldn't hold back a smile even if she wanted to. And in this case, she didn't want to anyway. The sight that greeted her upon entering the infirmary was worth so much more than words could ever say.

John was still in the infirmary bed, still very bruised and pale, and still very much asleep. But that was for the best. It was the fact that he looked so peaceful that made her feel at ease. And the way Rodney was positioned, also asleep, on the edge of John's bed made her smile spread wider.

She could feel Ronon's presence behind her, and knew he was grinning as well. Probably for different reasons though, as Rodney was now drooling quite heavily.

It had been about three days since the initial incident and John was looking better everyday, though still a long way from recovery. However, Dr. Keller had ensured them all - many times- that the Colonel would make a full recovery.

Rodney had remained in the infirmary most of the time even though he had been released the previous day. Ronon and herself, however, had been dropping by a couple times a day, though every time Colonel Sheppard had been asleep.

In fact, she had not seen him awake at all. She had been told that he had woken up briefly after the surgery and spoke with Rodney, but had been unconscious ever since. For a while, Dr. Keller had said it was perfectly normal, but Teyla had seen her attempting to wake him every-so-often.

As she and Ronon walked further into the room, their presence was noted and Dr. Keller came around the corner wearing a welcoming smile.

"Good to see you both," she greeted cheerfully.

Teyla smiled warmly back. "Good afternoon, Dr. Keller. We are just here to check on the Colonel."

"As usual," Ronon added, still grinning.

"I figured that was the case," Keller replied, leading Teyla and Ronon a little further from John's bed. This caused a slight twinge of fear grow in her stomach. Dr. Keller seemed to sense her assumption, and quickly told her otherwise.

"Oh no, don't worry. Everything's fine," she said quickly with a nervous laugh. "He's definitely improving. In fact, he's been showing signs of waking lately, which is very promising. Not that his sleeping was discouraging; He's been through a lot and his body is just recuperating. But, it will be nice to have him up and talking again."

Ronon chuckled. "You think that now…"

Teyla thought the comment was particularly funny, and found herself laughing for the first time in quite a while. She felt giddy, almost as if a great pressure had been lifted from her shoulders. And in essence, it had. She now felt confident that Colonel Sheppard would be alright with time, and soon, she would be hearing so from the man himself. Worry and fear no longer had a place in her body.

"Thank you, Doctor," Teyla said to Keller before gently squeezing her shoulder. "We appreciate you taking such good care of him. We know he can be… _tiresome _with his injuries. But he is worth saving."

Teyla felt as though she needed to say this because knowing John, he would end up in this infirmary many more times, and would hopefully yield similar results as this time. And while his recurring presence would irritate some doctors, the late Doctor Beckett was always able to take the Team's frequent visits in stride. So, she felt the need to thank Keller for being there for John, and could only hope she would be just as eager to help in the future.

Dr. Keller smiled genuinely in return. "Yes, I thought he may be. He seems well-liked."

Teyla heard Ronon snort behind her, though she knew he agreed with Keller's assessment.

"Yes, it would seem so," Teyla replied, sneaking a look over at the passed-out Rodney. "How long as Dr. McKay been here?"

The smile on Dr. Keller's face faded slightly and was replaced with something Teyla couldn't quite map out.

"Too long. He doesn't leave that much. Only for food or to use the facilities." Keller sighed, then turned to watch McKay for a few seconds. "I'm pretty sure he feels responsible for what happened."

"Probably does," Ronon added simply, though Teyla could not tell whether he agreed that Rodney _should_ feel guilty, or that it was just natural for him to.

But Teyla had figured that Rodney would feel responsible for at least some of what had happened. She did not agree with it, as it was out of any of their hands, but guessed he would feel that way. It upset her, but she knew with time, Rodney would also heal.

"Yes, I foresaw that as being a possible issue, but he will get through it with our help," Teyla said calmly, trying to bring back that optimistic feeling.

"I know. They both will," Keller responded warmly. "Feel free to pull up a chair," she added, gesturing towards Sheppard's bed. "Like I said, he should be waking up any time now."

Teyla nodded, glad to have gotten in a nice talk with the new Doctor. She and Ronon then proceeded to take Keller's advice and pulled up a chair around John's. They did so quietly, so they wouldn't wake Rodney. Well, Teyla was quiet. Ronon didn't use as much caution.

And here they sat, once again, hoping the Colonel would wake up. Yes, Teyla was sure John was on his way to recovery, but until she saw him wake up and heard him say so himself, it didn't have much meaning.

And, the fact was, she still felt uneasy about the recent events. At first, she had felt odd being in Colonel Sheppard's presence. It would remind her of the terrifyingly real dream she had of him. But once Kate had passed away, things had changed. She still did not feel completely comfortable around John, but she also remembered who he was. And remembered that he would never do anything to harm her. The opposite, really, as he had already proven many times he would go to great extents to keep her from harm.

And during those dreadful hours after Kate's death, Teyla saw John, not as a monster, but as a grieving friend. Much like herself. And more than that, she knew that he may have even felt guilty for the events that had transpired. And while she did not know what had been happening, she knew John would never purposely hurt anyone. It was his job to protect, and he took that job very seriously. Too seriously, at times, perhaps. But everyone felt safe with him, and she was certain this would not change those feelings.

She and Ronon remained sitting for an hour at most, making small talk or just staying quiet before the environment changed. It took a nurse dropping one of her utensils, but it was enough to awaken Rodney.

Teyla had to admit it was humorous the way Rodney jumped so high at the loud sound and looked fearfully around him as though something was going to attack. It was one of the many things that reminded her that the doctor was not a trained fighter like herself or John or Ronon, but that he was learning.

"Good afternoon, Rodney," she said happily with a grin on her face. She no longer spoke quietly because she did not mind if John woke up. In fact, she wanted him to wake up.

McKay still seemed a bit confused, but when he realized he now had company keeping a vigil at Sheppard's bed, he regained his usual pompous air.

"Yeah well, it would be better if the nursing staff wasn't so clumsy."

"You're not exactly suave yourself, McKay," Ronon added with a defiant smirk. Teyla would never be able to fully understand the male's need to tease one another. But, she had grown to accept it and knew what they really meant.

"Thanks Conan, but I don't think I asked your opinion," Rodney shot back.

Teyla then saw the need to defer the two of them from the conversation before it got too out-of-hand. "Rodney, Dr. Keller has informed us that you have not left much. Is there nothing new in your lab you must tend to?"

McKay considered this before answering, and Teyla watched as he attempted to pull something together.

"Well, I _have _been out of here a couple of times, and _no, _there's nothing new pertaining to me. Most of the scientists are working on their own projects right now, so the labs are crazy. I'd rather be here. It's quieter."

Teyla could see right past his excuse. He wanted to be here with Sheppard, just as she did. Only, his need was more urgent than hers, because of his guilt. Part of her wanted to erase that guilt from him herself, knowing that John would not appreciate it upon waking. He did not like people feeling guilty on his behalf. But, she would easily admit she didn't have the abilities that John had when it came to Rodney. He was an interesting case, and she had only seen John get to him.

"I see," she said finally, deciding that if she was going to talk to him, this was not the right moment. He would have to make some attempt to open up first.

"So, how long have you guys been in here?" Rodney asked, clearly attempting to change the subject.

"About an hour," Ronon answered simply.

Rodney nodded and turned his gaze back to John.

"Dr. Keller informed us that he's showing signs of waking," Teyla stated, not liking the awkward silence that had fallen. "Have you noticed anything yourself?"

McKay raised a eyebrow at this. "Uh, no. I don't know what crystal ball she's looking into because he's looked the same for three days."

She did not fully understand what he said, but figured it had to do with his idea of "voodoo magic." Either way, she did not protest, merely nodded and turned her focus back to John.

He definitely was looking better. He was not as pale, and the bruises were slowly started to fade. Always a good sign. Now, if only he would open his eyes…

As if he had heard her silent plea, she saw his hand twitch. It made her heart skip a beat, but her nerves calmed as the moments passed with no further movement. She seemed to have been the only one that noticed it, and began to wonder if it was all in her mind.

But then he moved again, and this time, Rodney noticed.

"He moved," Rodney exclaimed, jumping up from his chair. "He just moved, did you see that?" he asked, turning excitedly to Teyla. A smile reformed on her face, partly from the fact that John was waking up, and partly due to Rodney's excitement. Ronon had also perked up, but remained calm and passive.

As if on cue, Dr. Keller arrived and Teyla immediately stepped aside so she could access her patient better.

"Colonel, can you open your eyes for me?" she asked softly, standing very near John's head.

His eyes weren't open, but his face was scrunched up as if it was too bright in the room.

"Colonel, you have some visitors who have been wanting to see you," Keller continued, attempting to coax him into opening his eyes.

Teyla watched him for a minute, and could almost see the realization wash over his face. He seemed to recognize where he was before he even opened his eyes, which shouldn't come as much of a surprise to any of them. She continued to watch, and saw him sigh before forcing his eyes open into slits.

He had to blink a few good times against the bright lights of the infirmary, but when he was able to keep them open, Dr. Keller began her quick tests.

"Alright Colonel," she stated, standing up straight after finishing her tests "Looking good. Just keep that up and let me know if you need anything."

John nodded slowly, still obviously tired, and watched Keller leave before turning to his team.

"Hey," he rasped out. Teyla could tell that the condition of his voice startled him. But he probably didn't know how long he had been out either.

"Hello John. How are you feeling?" she asked gently.

He closed his eyes and smiled. "Dandy. How is everyone else?" he asked, opening his eyes and looking at them all, though mostly at Rodney.

"We're all fine," Ronon answered.

John watched Rodney for a brief moment before decided for himself that the man seemed to be okay. "How long have I been out?"

"About three days."

His brow furrowed at this. "Three days?"

"Yeah, Sheppard. Three days. You just always have to be a drama queen, don't you?" Rodney piped up in his usual annoyed sounding voice.

John simply rolled his eyes. "So everything went well?"

"Well no," Rodney retorted angrily. "You had to start bleeding all over the place and.."

"I meant with the entity," John interrupted.

"It is gone, John. Never to bother us again," Teyla answered, knowing that she could better put his worries to ease.

"Good. That thing was creepy."

"Tell me about it."

A brief silence fell over the room once again as they all remembered their own encounters with the evil version of Colonel Sheppard before he spoke up.

"Well, why did this happen? I mean, you were eaten by a whale," he said, his eyes on Rodney.

"We're pretty sure it had to do with the fact that my heart… uh stopped," Rodney answered a little unsteadily. "Kind of rebooted my body in sense, whereas yours never stopped, so what happened in the dream came over to real life."

This answer seemed to satisfy John, who fell quiet. Teyla could see he was growing more tired, but was fighting it probably for their sake.

"We will let you rest now," she said, glancing over to Ronon who got her message.

"Get better. You can't stay on your ass too long, Sheppard. You've already missed a lot of your training," Ronon added, standing up.

John grimaced. "Looking for to it."

Ronon chuckled then patted him lightly on an un-bruised section of his arm.

"We will be by later to see you, Colonel," Teyla said, smiling warmly at him. She felt comfortable leaving him now because she saw his eyes and knew he was alright and would fight to make a full recovery.

He nodded again, and squeezed her hand, then she turned to leave. She noticed that Rodney was not following her and Ronon, and figured that it would be best to let him stay. With that, she left.

--------------------------

McKay stayed behind because he couldn't bring himself to leave. It was as simple as that, and yet, it was also so complicated. He never usually felt like this.

"You're hovering," Sheppard said suddenly, bring McKay back to the present.

"Am not," he responded, falling back to his chair.

"You are, and that's never a good sign."

"Whatever you say," McKay replied trying not to let on his true feelings.

"You don't feel guilty, do you?" Sheppard asked suddenly, taking Rodney by surprise.

"Uh no," he answered without really thinking about it. It wasn't exactly true, but he wasn't planning on letting Sheppard know that. He looked back down at Sheppard, and noticed the look on his face, and frowned. "_You _don't feel guilty, right?"

Sheppard did not answer quite as quickly as McKay did, but his "No" was just as uncertain.

"Good, because it was out of your hands."

"Was out of yours too," Sheppard added, not looking at Rodney. Which was fine as Rodney was not looking at him, either.

"Right," Rodney said, feeling kind of awkward.

"Well, then I guess it's good neither one of us feel guilty, huh?"

McKay couldn't hold back a smile. He knew what was going on here, and was a part of it himself. He didn't know what he had been expecting, just knew that if anyone could make him feel better, it was Sheppard. And, in some weird way, he had. And was apparently helping Sheppard as well.

"Yep. That works."

"So," Sheppard began in a replenished tone. "You think Keller will let me get out for a while. It feels like a beautiful day."

McKay cocked his eyebrows. "It _feels _like a beautiful day?"

Sheppard smiled. "Yeah, you can't feel it? I've always been able to detect beautiful days. Perfect flying weather, actually."

Rodney rolled his eyes. Leave it to Sheppard to come up with something like that.

"Well, good luck on that, but I doubt it," he replied, standing up. "But, I think I might go out and see if you really have that ability," Rodney bragged, knowing that Keller wouldn't let Sheppard out yet. Mostly because the man was about to fall asleep.

He saw Sheppard frown, and grinned at it. It was simply their relationship.

Finally, Rodney felt like he was ready to leave, and just before walking out, he turned to get one last look at Sheppard. And, believe it or not, the man was already asleep.

Rodney sighed to himself and just hoped that Sheppard would be around to detect every beautiful day.

* * *

**EN: **Hope you all liked it. I usually go for nice long talks to get feelings out, but this way felt right. Thanks to all who stuck with this story, despite the act that I'm getting crazy in my old age. (Which is sad as I'm only 16...) Haha, oh well. 


End file.
